Surah Ar-Rum, Ayah 43

The Command to follow the Straight Path before the Day of Resurrection

Here Allah commands His servants to hasten to obedience to Him and to hasten to do good deeds.

فَأَقِمْ وَجْهَكَ لِلدِّينَ الْقِيِّمِ مِن قَبْلِ أَن يَأْتِىَ يَوْمٌ لاَّ مَرَدَّ لَهُ مِنَ اللَّهِ

(So, set you your face to the straight and right religion, before there comes from Allah a Day which none can avert.) The Day of Resurrection, for when Allah wants it to happen, no one will be able to avert it.

يَوْمَئِذٍ يَصَّدَّعُونَ

(On that Day men shall be divided.) means, they will be separated, with one group in Paradise and another in Hell. Allah says:

مَن كَفَرَ فَعَلَيْهِ كُفْرُهُ وَمَنْ عَمِلَ صَـلِحاً فَلاًّنفُسِهِمْ يَمْهَدُونَ لِيَجْزِىَ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ مِن فَضْلِهِ

(Whosoever disbelieves will suffer from his disbelief, and whosoever does righteous good deeds, then such will prepare a good place for themselves. That He may reward those who believe. and do righteous good deeds, out of His bounty.) meaning that He may reward them from His bounty, in return for one good deed, he will get the reward for ten, up to seven hundred like it, as much as Allah wills.

إِنَّهُ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْكَـفِرِينَ

(Verily, He likes not the disbelievers.) yet He is still just with them and does not oppress them.

Commentary

ظَهَرَ‌ الْفَسَادُ فِي الْبَرِّ‌ وَالْبَحْرِ‌ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِي النَّاسِ (Plight has appeared on land and sea because of what the hands of the people have earned 30:41). The author of Ruh ul-Ma’ ani has explained that the word fasad' (translated in the text as 'plight' ) means all sorts of calamities, such as famine, epidemic diseases, frequency of the incidents of fire, drowning, lack of Allah's blessing in everything, and reduction in profits and incurring of losses in lucrative businesses. It can also be deduced from this verse that the cause of falling of calamities in the world is commission of sins and other evil acts by the people. Shirk (association of partners with Allah) and infidelity are the most severe of them all, and other sins follow after them.

Man deviated from God’s scheme and completely ignored His creation plan, in that he single-mindedly pursued worldly comforts. He very soon realized that modern civilization, which he had thought would fulfil his limitless hidden desires and ambitions, was only a source of utter destruction and chaos. The present global warming is an apt illustration of this point: the modern culture of consumerism and greed for more and more has given an immense boost to industrialization, which has resulted in global climate change. Scientists now believe that the modern industrial age spells total catastrophe and that the world is careering head on to its doom. The damage is so severe and irreversible that, very soon, life on this earth will be impossible.